Going global

The fastest-growing tourist destinations in the world are in Asia, the Pacific and
the Americas. The country that draws the most tourists overall is France.

But when it comes to studying tourism and hospitality, the United States — which ranks
No. 2 globally in the number of visitors it attracts and No. 1 in the amount of money
spent, according to the U.N. — still comes out on top. With its combination of top-tier
tourist destinations, fully developed hospitality infrastructure and world-class educational
institutions, students come from throughout the world to study the industry in the
United States.

Students studying in the three-week International Hospitality and Tourism Academy
will visit Charleston (pictured) and Orlando. A reception welcoming the students will
be held June 27 at 3:30 p.m. at the Darla Moore School of Business.

Enter the University of South Carolina’s International Hospitality and Tourism Academy, a three-week summer program starting June 27 that welcomes foreign students for
intensive training in hospitality and tourism management. Now in its third year, the
International Hospitality and Tourism Academy is bringing 35 students from such places
as China, Hong Kong, Macau, South Korea and Colombia. The students will be welcomed
with a reception at the Darla Moore School of Business, Room 113, at 3:30 p.m. on
Monday, June 27.

Most participants will have just completed their first or second year in a tourism
or hospitality program in their home country. “They want to go out to see the world
— to see how lessons are taught here and how hotels and clubs are operated here in
the United States,” says international program coordinator Lin Wang, who organized
the course.

The class will travel to Orlando and Charleston, seeing first-hand how restaurateurs
and hotel owners manage their operations. Numerous faculty members from the College
of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management will work with the students. “One of the
things we offer is the quality of the university,” says Ercan Turk, associate dean
for research and graduate studies in the College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport
Management. “They are coming to one of the top programs in the U.S.”

The university also offers proximity to Charleston, which has been ranked the No.
1 small U.S. city destination by readers of Conde Nast Traveler for the past five
years.

Training students is one goal of the summer program; another is raising awareness
of the university’s hotel, restaurant and tourism management degree programs. “Once
the students know about us, they may apply to our program in the future,” Wang says.

There’s a plan in place for that, too. The college is launching a one-plus-three program
in which students from foreign countries will study for one year at their home institutions
and then come to the University of South Carolina for the next three years. In August,
27 students from China are coming to study in the new program — the largest of its
kind at the university, Turk says.

Tourism growth in Asia and the Pacific has reached the level that many of the top
hotels in the world are in that region, Turk says. But there is still a lot to learn
by Chinese students coming to the United States, Turk and Wang agree.

As just one example, they point out that the whole idea of private clubs is a relatively
new, niche phenomenon in China, whereas there is a long history of such clubs in the
United States. “The Chinese don’t have the kind of accumulation of knowledge over
time in this industry — they are still opening up to the world, and then they are
coming straight to the U.S. to get the best education they can get,” Turk says.

There are other differences, too. In China, Wang says, there is an emphasis on “trying
to give you a feeling that you are honored, that you are being served at all times,”
an emphasis that is not only cultural but also stems from low labor costs. The education
systems are different, too, “so they want to learn what we offer to our students here,”
he adds.

Tourism has proven to be a robust sector of the economy in recent years. In 2014,
46 million people traveled overseas, according to the United Nations, an increase
of 4.3 percent over the previous year and the fifth straight year of strong growth.
Travel and tourism supports more jobs than financial services, education and banking
in every region in the world, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council.

In an industry that is growing and globalized, Turk notes that the College of Hospitality,
Retail and Sport Management’s offerings for international students will not only benefit
students from overseas, but also those born and raised in the United States.

“Looking at it from the perspective of our current students, it will open up their
minds when we bring more international students into the classroom,” Turk says. “We
are increasing the body of that presence, so there is an increased chance of our U.S.
students interacting with international students — becoming friends with them, networking
with them.”

Tourism is a global industry by its very nature, Turk emphasizes.

“This is more of an opening up to the outside world — making sure that students and
faculty understand that growth is happening and development is happening outside our
borders,” he says. “We are living in a global environment, and you never know where
the career of a student is going to take them.”

College Spotlight

We are a community of travelers, sports fanatics, foodies, retail therapists and moment makers. But this isn’t a hobby. It’s our business. We’re lifelong learners, leaders, scholars and entrepreneurs, and together we’re shaping the future of the world’s customer-experience industries.